Sunday, June 9, 2013

Writing is not a solitary occupation: The Dr. Brid Reading Series. Part 2

It is often said that writing is a solitary occupation,
however as you can see, it was far from that with our writing team. Apart from
writing together, our material had to be vetted by the curriculum officers as being
suitable for our schools, and changes made if required. Accountability was part
of the process.

In approaching our
task, apart from taking into account reading levels, we apportioned a certain
amount of the material to be non-fiction. The selection of non-fiction topics
was often a joint decision, driven by research, or vice versa. An example would
be that of the Jamaicans who went to build the Panama Canal. (Those Who Left
Jamaica). We considered that Jamaicans being instrumental in the creation of one of the ‘wonders of the
world’ to be importantfor our children
to know about. Another example would be selections about great Black achievers,
likeMohammed Ali and Pele (many of
these would appeal to boys). I felt a particular privilege to be able to write
the piece on Mary Seacole, ( An Angel of Mercy), especiallyas I was able to research it from her own
book, The Adventures of Mary Seacole, which was then available in the National
Library. I spent hours making notes in
the National Library as such a precious acquisition could not be taken out of the library -and I began to feel an affinity for herwhich camefrom reading her actual words.

In each of the grades,
in recognition of the varying reading levels in any given grade, there were a
few books that dipped down to the previous grade’s reading level. This was to
encourage the slower readers. The concept of a number of books, rather than an
anthology type of reader, wasto give
the child a sense of achievement. Each book would give the reader the feeling
that he/she had completed that book successfully and could then move on to the
next task, a more advanced book, but holding the possibility of success
achieved with the previous book. Motivation!

As I pointed out previously, we were a unique team; often
this mix and balance was reflected in the choices we made in our writing. Peggy
often had a male protagonist. She had a son. I have two girls. I often had a
female protagonist, and even when there were a number of children in a story,
there would be a girl who was championing the cause, whatever it was. Karl’s
stories often reflected his great concern for the spiritual aspect of our
lives, or for the underdog and the consequent overcoming. The Heights by Great Men aptly illustrates this. We monitored the
gender balance, not only amongst our protagonists, but also among the
significant others. One always has to be mindful of the hidden messages in
stories for children.

Closely aligned to this is the matter of stereotypes. At
that time as mentioned previously, Rastafarians were still seen as some sort of
social threat tothe status quo. Hard to
imagine that, now, eh! Peggy wrote a story called Broom-man to show that the
broom-man, a Rasta, was an honest and acceptable part of our social fabric. (Other
stories dealing with stereotypes would be Auntie Bev and the New Van- mine, about a aunt who can fix cars, to the
surprise of the men in the area; or Karl’s Who Will Comb Our Hair?- about a grandpa who has to comb his granddaughters’
hair; both of these were written later,
for grades 1-3.) We would sometimes
bounce ideas of each other while
writing.I can still see the interaction between
us,deliberating the viability of an
idea, sometimes not agreeing, and Peggy, smiling wisely and settling it all.

We looked at the artwork roughs for accuracy in relation to
culture and story and also to catch any stereotypes. For example, there was in
one story an image of a Chinese man in a shop who looked more like a caricature
than a character. Good to be able to catch this and correct it.

We were mindful of the curriculum but also of other
educational considerations, including the opinions of the stakeholders. We take
some of these matters for granted now,
but for some, we were breaking new ground then, and for some, there was even
controversy.

For example, Karl wrote a story, a retelling really of a
folktale with Anancy andDog and Puss. The title was Why Dog Don’t Like Puss.
Yes indeed, there wasCreole in the
title. A member of the public wrotea letter
to the Gleaner, expressing concern about it. However educators were becoming aware of the
significance of the Creole in our children’s lives, the fact that use ofCreole could be a validation of our lives.
Besides, it was a folk tale. Most importantly, the curriculum officers had
signed off on the material.

Another example came from our decision re family types. We had decided that there should be a variety
of family types which mirrored our reality.Hence, there were two-parent families (with fathers who were involved in
their children’s lives), single mothers, the extended family with grandmothers
and grandfathers, children who lived with grandmothers only. We felt strongly
that no child should readour books and
find himself/herself missing. If your family type wasn’t in one book it would be
in another. In this regard, Peggy wrote a story called My Father.It was, and is my favourite of all the
material we produced. In summary, a girl wishes she had a dress for the
festival concert which she knows her mother cannot afford. Her mother has also
told her that her father, whom she did not know, is returning from England to Jamaica. She wonders what it will be like
to meet a father she has never seen. One day a man turns up at their gate. He
is her father, and he has a lovely dress for her which can be used for the concert.
Fairy tale happy ending? Right? Not so! After they give the father something to
eat and drink, he departs for his place
in the country where his other children live. That is not the ending; the
ending is sweet. The mother admits that she feared that her daughter might love
her father more (the provider of largesse). Of course, the child comes through
as the heroine we know she is. She assures her mother that a dress could not change
her love for her. This is the happy ending!

This story resulted in a very serious meeting between the
curriculum officers and the three writers. It was made clear that the family we
were required to portray was the nuclear Christian family. The three writers
remained quietly united and stuck out for this depiction of a family situation
which we all knew existed. We prevailed. I think that the power of this story
lay in the fact that it was written in Peggy’s unemotional style, but carried
such a punch. We were told later, by those officers who evaluated the books in
the field, that it was one of the most popular stories. Children wanted to read
it. They didn’t talk about it; they just wanted to read it. I suspect that many
were finding themselves in that book.

People often ask where, as writers, we get our ideas.Some of the stories we included were
retelling of traditional tales, which enchanting as they were, also carried
some kernel of wisdom, for example Aesop’s Fables, and The King’s New Clothes,
as well as Caribbean and African tales. Some of our ideas came from our experiences/our
childhoods (universal themes played out in real life) or from the experiences
of the children we knew. One of mine, Up On The Roof, was based on a friend of
my children, then little, who jumped off her roof thinking that like one of the
TV super heroes, she could indeed fly. She broke her leg. Although the story as
written was changed somewhat, it was still a cautionary tale. Moreover, our visits to primary schools prior to
writing, also allowed us to find out about the interests of our children.

The teacher in me makes me wonder if the present day users
of these books recognize the goldmine
which exists in them. As a teacher of geography, one of the things I loved to
do was to find a piece of literature which could be linked to the topic of
study. For example, when studying volcanoes there was a riveting first-hand
account of a volcanic eruption in the Caribbean.

So I wonder if teachers
today think to make links from the past to the present and the future. For
example,Mary Seacole visited Panama because of the building of the canal, and administered
to workers there, and there is renewed interest in her in the UK now. I wonder
if they consider that there are still descendants of Jamaicans who went to
build the Panama Canal, that the canal is being increased in size; and that we
are considering strategies to position ourselves to benefit from this. "Colon Man"
(celebrated in song) was a part of the individual Jamaican’s success in the
past. Is the Panama Canal to play yet another role in our fortunes? Our links
to Panama through Mary Seacole and our workers, are still with us. I love
introducing ideasthat make children
begin to think, to wonder. There is so much in literature for children to enjoy
and think about.

My final post on this series will share with you the stories
that children seemed to especially like; those that seem to be favourites even
now, and the ones I wish I could put into my dream anthology.

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About Me

I'm author of children's stories and editor of textbooks. My stories have been published in the UK, the USA and Jamaica. I have won a number of awards, including a Bronze Musgrave Medal from the Institute of Jamaica (2004) and the special prize for the best children's story by the Commonwealth Foundation (2011). I have prsented papers on children's literature both in Jamaica and overseas, and have run writing workshops both in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean.